Press Freedom Without Protection: Why Ghana’s Journalists Still Bleed For The Story
By Shine Esi Kwawukumey Ghana is often praised as a model for press freedom in West Africa, with a Constitution that guarantees media independence, rejects censorship, and protects journalists from intimidation. But beyond the global rankings and commendations, many reporters covering the country’s most sensitive and volatile stories still rely on little more than a notebook, a phone, and their own courage. From election grounds and protest marches to illegal mining sites, corruption exposés and crime scenes, journalists work largely without insurance, protective equipment, digital security tools or formal safety training. For many, the risk is not hypothetical. It is physical, psychological and, in some cases, life-altering. Interviews with journalists, editors, regulators, lawyers and security experts point to a stark contradiction at the heart of Ghana’s media ecosystem: safety is often an afterthought, acknowledged forcefully only after an attack. Jonathan Rozen, CPJ “De...